Former American professional boxer, Ray Mancini, is best known by his stage name as Boom Boom Mancini. Mancini was active in the boxing world from 1979 to 1992. He is of American and Italian descent, and was born in Ohio. Mancini’s inspiration for boxing began from his father, Lenny Mancini, who was a top-ranked contender during the 1940s. It was through his father that Mancini developed his boxing skills and began training since he was really young. Mancini made his first professional debut in 1979 against Phil Bowen, against whom he won in the first-round with a knockout. His punching style got the attention of network executives of many American television networks. Since then, Mancini became a regular on their sports programming. Mancini continued thriving with his knockout style even against Bobby Sparks in 1980, when he won in the first round for the regional Ohio State Lightweight title. Within a year after that, Mancini was able to win his first major title by defeating Jorge Morales for the WBC affiliated NABF Lightweight championship. Mancini continued his journey in Lightweight championship in 1982 too, when he comfronted Arturo Frias at The Aladdin in Las Vegas. After many matches and titles, Mancini retired in 1992. However, he remained active as an actor and sports commentator. He was inducted in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2017, Mancini played the role of Charlie in Bad Frank.
